Making Waves

October 25, 2002|By David Volz Special Correspondent

Davie — Robert Villegas earned a merit badge -- and in the process he learned something about the world of radio and made some new friends.

Villegas was one of about 300 Boy and Girl Scouts who participated in the 45th annual Jamboree on the Air sponsored here by the South Florida Council of the Boy Scouts of America. The two-day jamboree took place Saturday and Sunday at Camp Seminole in Davie.

"I learned about how ham radio works," said Villegas, who lives in Davie. "I spoke with kids in Georgia and I earned my Radio Badge."

Mark Rethemeyer, who ran the event and serves as district commissioner for the Pine Island District, said the weekend program gave scouts a chance to learn more about radio. Participating scouts set up tents and played volleyball during the jamboree. They also had the opportunity to see how various ham radio systems work and talk to scouts from all over the world.

"We talked to Australia, Germany and Russia," Rethemeyer said. "We taught the kids about radio frequencies and the differences in equipment. We also showed them about the digital services that are available."

During the event, amateur radio operators helped the scouts work with the radios and qualify for their Radio Badges. The scouts learned how to use radio signals and computer technology to download photographs from scout troops in other regions of the world. These scout troops were also participating in the international jamboree.

Scott Primack, spokesperson for the American Radio Relay League was glad to share his knowledge with the scouts.

"Using a 2.5-watt radio, we were able to communicate with scouts in New South Wales, Australia. We also had radios with as much as 1,000 watts," he said. "We showed them how radios can use satellites to bounce signals to other parts of the world. We want to share our knowledge of radios with young people."

Just the chance to use a radio to talk other scouts interested Freddy Druckerman, 9, of Southwest Ranches.

"I talked with a scout named William in New York. This was fun and I made new friends over the radio," he said.

Justin Baker-Robinson, 10, of Davie agreed. "I learned about how radios work. I was also able to talk to kids from around the world," he said.